Louisiana Tech junior running back Ryan Moats has been one of the better runningbacks in the country over the past two years, after serving primarily as a backup his freshman year. Although he played in the WAC, Moats has proven he can perform at a high level against top competition. He ran for 81 yards on just 14 carries against the Miami Hurricanes, 104 yards and a touchdown at Tennessee, and 236 yards and 4 touchdowns in an upset victory over the then 18th ranked Fresno State Bulldogs. Even though he was hampered by an ankle injury the majority of the year, he still finished the season with 1,774 yards and 18 rushing touchdowns, both school records. He was named offensive player of the year by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association and the Western Athletic Conference, and was a semi-finalist for the Doak Walker Award.

Ryan has the speed to break the long run, the ability to make defenders miss in the open field, and deceptive power for a player his size. In addition to breaking long runs, he also does the little things that most people don't notice. He is a player who rarely loses yards. He is always moving forward and is great at turning a three yard loss into a one yard gain or a one yard gain into a three or four yard gain. He has extremely quick feet and a running style that compares favorably to that of Barry Sanders. The biggest weakness for Moats is his size. At 5'9, 210 pounds, he doesn't have ideal size for a runningback, but he plays alot bigger than he is and he has shown that he can handle the load. He's averaged nearly 30 carries a game and even carried 38 times against Hawaii this past year. The fact that he's a little undersized and coming from a small school could hurt his draft stock. However, he should still be a first day pick and could go as high as the second round in April.